The Blood God Smiled
by SDWilson
Summary: In the aftermath of the 9th Black Crusade, anarchy and revolt blossomed for a short period of time. This bloodletting fed the appetite of the Chaos God Khorne but there were men and women of honor who fought against his machinations and in the name of the God Emperor of Mankind.
1. The Blood God Smiled: Prologus

**.**

 **.**

 **It was the 38th Millennium**

The Great Galactic War that would later be known as the 9th Black Crusade had ended. The God Emperor of Mankind still ruled, his body all but a rotting corpse entombed within his Golden Throne of machinery from the Dark age of Technology while his mind still roamed the Warp. The Ruinous Powers still sought to bring down the pillars of creation, tempting those of weak mind and will with promises of power and retribution.

Many had answered the call to fight on the side of mankind in the name of the God Emperor. The mighty Adeptus Astartes, the Space Marines, genetically engineered warriors of legend whose chapter houses each numbered one thousand and who were the God Emperor's Angels of Death were first amongst them. The Ultramarines, White Scars, Lamenters, Black Eagles, and the Celestial Swords numbered among those chapters who prominently figured in the war. Their thousands were not alone. They were joined in arms by the soldiery from regiments in the Imperial Guard, their numbers totaling in the millions and they were also joined by the mighty space armada of the Imperial Navy.

Arrayed against them was a mighty force named the Black Legion and under the command of a Lord of Chaos named Abaddon the Despoiler. Millennia ago, they had served the God Emperor of Mankind as the Luna Wolves Space Marine Legion with Ezekyle Abaddon as their First Captain, but no longer. They had renamed themselves the Black Legion, their numbers far greater than the thousand in the Space Marine chapters who now served the God Emperor, and their champion had been renamed Abaddon the Despoiler. They were joined by the fallen Space Marines chapter known as the Brazen Devourers as well as countless other scattered warbands of renegade Space Marines. Allied with them were untold numbers of traitors to the human race as well as countless voidcraft which comprised their space fleet.

The results were mixed. The Lamenters Space Marines chapter suffered great losses defending the world of Corrillia against the Black Legion until the siege was broken by the combined might of the White Scars and Ultramarines chapters of Space Marines. The Black Eagles were spread thin, projecting their power into three different sectors of the Empire in order to prevent the spread of war, when they were attacked by the Brazen Devourers. The resulting battle of space fleets left both sides decimated, licking their wounds. The Celestial Swords were destroyed to a man when they attempted to confront the Black Legion. But finally, the forces of Chaos withdrew in the year 552.M38, seventeen years after the struggle had begun. Billions had perished and the Blood God's laughter echoed throughout the galaxy as the Black Crusade had only served to whet his appetite. Soon after, another story began to unfurl. Heresy took hold within the Aessina Sector and once again, blood began to flow.

 **The Blood God smiled**


	2. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 1

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Manufactorum Complex

A cacophony of thunder split the air as the shells began landing amidst the manufactorum complex of the Essinar metropolis. As the ordnance exploded, dirt and metal were thrown through the air mixed in with the blood and bones of planetary defenders as well as the loyalist guardsmen of the Vorlossian Siege Infantry regiment manning the bulwark guarding the manufactorum. A haze of smoke and dust hung in the air and the continued shelling from the traitorous siege force hailing from the Mazeroth system reverberated through the defensive emplacement. The bombardment continued as planetary defenders and guardsmen alike hunkered down behind the siege wall in their shallow trenches. They prayed to the God Emperor for the spacecraft of the Imperial Navy to arrive and claim superiority of the skies, eliminating the cannon fire they faced, but the fleet was not to be found.

Then a lone figure could be seen standing atop a battlement of the bulwark. She was tall and barefoot, dressed in tattered rags, with her long blonde hair flowing in the wind as she hoisted a standard haft into the air. Emblazoned upon the standard was a silver castle tower on a sable field with an arc of five silver stars above, the Vorlossian Battle Standard. Somehow, the skinny waif managed to recklessly swing the standard, her body swaying in opposed reaction to the swinging of the haft. Her name was Gelika and she was one of countless orphans this brief war had already created. But, she was more. She was a symbol of hope as she traveled along the front at the behest of the Imperial Guard combined command. A great cheer of support rose from the trenches in response as her courage breathed life and purpose into the infantrymen.

Then, stone and dirt showered into the air as another shell landed within the bulwark. Where Gelika had been perched upon a battlement was now a pile of rubble. The tattered standard lay in the dirt, its haft broken. Little Gelika was buried underneath a cairn of rubble. Ordnance continued exploding and there was the palpable feeling of silence emanating from the ranks of the Vorlossian Siege Infantry as Hope left their hearts.


	3. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 2

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Capitol Imperialis _Magna Currum_

The floor and walls within the great Capitol Imperialis designated as the _Magna Currum_ shook and groaned as artillery fire landed about it. Still, the enormous mobile command base held together. Sergeant Kovic strode down the corridor, his tall stature carrying his helmeted head above that of those around him. His regimental uniform, sable with silver trim, was showing signs of wear from digging trenches with his squad but the urgency with which he had been summoned by Colonel Minoc had not allowed for him to improve upon his presentation. Again, the Capitol Imperialis shook from the bombardment.

The Sergeant quickly stopped, turning to face a hatch on his right labeled in High Gothic, "Locus Informa 3", or Briefing Room number 3 in the Low Gothic vulgar. He paused for a moment, then stared into the pict-capture box on the hatch and knocked firmly. After a moment, a voice responded. "Enter, Sergeant Kovic." There was the audible release of the locking mechanism after which the hatch slid from left to right, into the bulkhead. Kovic took a deep breath and then strode into the room. The groaning of the bombardment was reduced to a muted rumbling within the briefing room as the hatch slid back into place.

Kovic quickly recognized the tall and helmeted ebon-skinned man standing in front of him as Colonel Minoc. Despite the Colonel's sable and silver regimental uniform being notably worn, it still appeared to have been pressed that day. To the Colonel's right, standing at ease, was a helmeted Commissar wearing the standard red-trimmed great coat bearing epaulets on its shoulders. Standing at ease in front of the Colonel and with their backs to the Sergeant were two helmeted guardsmen attired in the same sable and silver regimental uniform as the Sergeant wore, save for being in pristine condition. The leftmost was holding a staff in his right hand, resting its end upon the ground. Without pausing to further discern their features, the Sergeant stepped up beside the rightmost of the two guardsmen, came to attention, and sharply brought his hand up in salute. "Colonel Minoc, Sergeant Kovic reports."

The Colonel sharply brought his hand up in a return salute, then down, followed by the Sergeant's. "Stand at ease, Sergeant," came Minoc's quick response. Kovic complied, clasping his hands behind his back and mirroring the stance of the two shorter guardsmen to his left. "Your squad has been assigned to achieve a mission of vital importance to the Imperium. You will escort these Warrant Officers, Primaris Psyker Brecht and Overseer Terzo, in their performance of a personnel extraction from the under-city." Colonel Minoc paused for a moment, giving Kovic a moment to look over and examine the two Warrant Officers and digest what was being laid before him.

"Primaris Psyker Brecht will have the final say in all matters related to this mission, without exception." At first glance it was clear to the Sergeant that Primaris Psyker Brecht was the guardsman holding the staff. He was lean and muscular, covered by tattoos of runes and sigils inked in blue and silver on every exposed portion of his flesh, including his face. His emerald eyes shone from within those runes. His staff was shod with silver on the bottom and a golden aquila on top. Similar runes and sigils were burned into its wooden surface and lined with silver.

Colonel Minoc then continued in his slow and measured speech, "Warrant Officer Terzo is Primaris Psyker Brecht's Overseer. He will ensure the Primaris Psyker's safety as well as ensure that he does not fall prey to the machinations of the Warp, enacting the _Final Sanction_ if necessary." Sergeant Kovic noted that the Overseer's appearance was far more normal than that of the psyker. His eyes were a common brown and the sable and silver fabric skullcap he wore beneath his helmet, covering most of his forehead, gave him the appearance of a welder. Welding being a common task required of infantry from siege regiments, the fabric skullcap gave the Overseer an appearance that would seamlessly fit into any squad of the Vorlossian regiment.

"With an understanding as to the reluctance of some guardsmen to work with any psyker, even those sanctioned by the Imperium, Commissar Treves has been assigned to ensure that loyalty to the mission will not be compromised," Minoc added with a tone of certainty. The Commissar stood motionless at the mention of his name. Kovic knew that any member of his squad would receive an explosive round in his head from the Commissar's bolt pistol without hesitation if he showed signs of threatening the mission's integrity.

"Your squad has already received their requisition chits from the Munitorum and they should be gearing up as we speak. The Warrant Officers will fill you and your squad in on the mission parameters as they see fit. Any questions, you can direct to them." The Colonel paused for a moment and then continued, "Dismissed." All four quickly came to attention and saluted with the Colonel returning their salutes, and then they departed through the hatch. For a moment, the muted rumbling of the bombardment became a roar and then died again as the hatch returned to the closed position.

With the room emptied of all save the Colonel, he stood there pondering the situation. The last thing he had expected was a command from Inquisitor Domingus herself. Now, he was allowing her two Throne Agents to masquerade as members of his regiment while pulling a squad into the under-city instead of filling a much needed position shoring the defenses. Worse still, he wondered, _What might there be in the under-city in the form of heretics or worse rather than mere traitors to the rebellion?_ The questions continued to mount in his mind. _Where was the sector fleet of the Imperial Navy?_ He had anticipated the fight would have already been taken to Mazera, the home world of the forces who had rebelled against the Imperium and attacked Essinar, but that had not happened. _Why had the command astropaths received no communications from the fleet?_ The questions were without end and without answers. _When would the parts arrive to repair the Behemoth Cannon of the Capitol Imperialis?_ As if sensing the Colonel's thoughts, the mighty _Magna Currum_ shook as an artillery shell exploded upon its armor.

But, before he could continue brooding or proceed to doing more constructive work, there was a knock on the hatch to the briefing room. Colonel Minoc looked at the pict display attached to the bulkhead to see an image of a plump robed man, the combined command Rector, Azimus Voltice. Dreading where this would lead as the Rector appeared giddy with excitement, Colonel Minoc answered, "You may enter, Rector Voltice," and activated the hatch release mechanism.

The Rector stormed in as the sounds of war briefly escalated with the opening of the hatch. "Did you hear the wonderful news, Colonel Minoc?" he blurted out. Before the Colonel could respond, the Rector continued, "They were able to dig little Gelika out of the rubble she was buried in. My little saint-to-be is alive and well." He sounded so self-absorbed while speaking that Colonel Minoc nearly punched him in the mouth. "But, she wishes we would just let her be. That way she can quietly keep working to bring supplies and ammunition to the guardsmen without fanfare." After pausing for effect, he continued, "At first I was shocked, shocked I say, when considering the effect her near death has had on the morale of the guard, but then realized how wonderful this is. I remembered what you said regarding how previous saints had been canonized posthumously and after witnesses had seen them perform miracles after their deaths. So, I suggested to the combined command that we make an official announcement, declaring her dead. Gelika has become quite recognizable and if she keeps appearing after being declared officially dead, everyone will think she is a truly risen saint. This will have an immense effect upon the morale of the troops. Having made myself her sponsor for sainthood, my ascension in the ranks of the Ministorum will be ensured and you will be remembered by me for the aid you have rendered me in this with your knowledge, Colonel Minoc! Praise the Emperor and his Divine Will!"

Colonel Minoc took a deep breath and managed to release his anger by breathing, again passing on his desire to punch the Rector in the mouth. Rector Azimus was selfishly and joyously calculating his personal rise through the Ministorum while Colonel Minoc was not sure of surviving the day and his men were dying in the streets of Essinar. Again, the Capitol Imperialis shook from the bombardment.


	4. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 3

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Capitol Imperialis _Magna Currum_

Outside the briefing room, the four men began to make their way down the corridor to the continued sounds of the bombardment. Sergeant Kovic noted their journey was made easier due to the wide berth given the Primaris Psyker by the guardsmen and officers of the various regiments and combined command. But, a lone figure stood expectantly awaiting them in the corridor. She was tall, with long blonde hair, heavily bruised and wearing tattered clothing with no shoes upon her feet. The Sergeant could not believe his eyes as he had seen little Gelika buried under a pile of rubble earlier in the day at the Manufactorum.

"Greetings Sergeant Kovic," she said with a warm cultured manner that seemed to him it should be coming from the young daughter of a nobleman rather than an orphan running the streets. It was a strange thought to be overlapped with his image of her being buried under the rubble from an artillery bombardment. "I overheard that you and your squad will be going into the under-city and thought that I might be of assistance."

The Sergeant knew from the Commissar's slight movement that he had taken hold of his bolt pistol and was within a hair's breadth of putting an explosive round in her head. But, the Primaris Psyker placed his hand upon the Commissar's right shoulder and spoke. "I do not believe that will be necessary Commissar," he calmly stated in a voice with an air of command which had a bewitching quality to it. With that, he turned to the Overseer, and as the two stared at each other, it occurred to the Sergeant that they must be communicating telepathically.

Unsure of how to evaluate this situation, the Overseer looked to his gifted fellow inquisitorial agent for answers and felt a slight pressure as his mind was entered. _Yes, I know that we said nothing of this outside the briefing room and thus she is lying_ , spoke the disembodied voice within the Overseer's head. _When she spoke, I felt this itching in my head. Most of the time, that itch is telling me of the course of action I must take. I believe this is hinting for us to accept her offer._ _I may not have been officially trained to read the Emperor's Tarot but I still catch glimpses of the future._ The Overseer nodded in response as the Sergeant watched intently and the Commissar eyed little Gelika who calmly stood awaiting an answer.

"You may accompany us, young one," Brecht said in a flat voice. Little Gelika smiled. With that, the psyker immediately began marching toward the personnel hatch of the _Magna Currum_ and the others quickly followed suit.

Still stunned by the appearance of the young girl he had seen buried beneath a cairn of rubble earlier in the day, Kovic spoke up. "I saw the artillery fire strike the battlement you stood upon earlier...What happened?...How did..." He was at a loss for words to fully question the situation.

"I must have been blessed by the Emperor's Divine Will," she said with a shrug as they continued on. "The next thing I remember is awakening in extreme pain and with the plump face of that loathsome Rector, Azimus Voltice, staring into my eyes." She paused momentarily, and slightly shivered before continuing, "Later, I learned I had been taken to the mobile field hospital on sublevel three of the metropolis, beneath the Capitol Imperialis. Apparently, the battlement collapsed around me and formed a pocket in which I was curled up and knocked unconscious. I was told one of the operators manning a power-lifter and repairing the bulwark exposed the pocket in which I was contained without collapsing it upon me. I was told that I was handed over to some Commissar or other and taken to the facility I awoke in." She paused again, this time with a look of disgust in her eyes, then resumed her story in a wearied tone. "Rector Voltice had me brought here so that the combined command could discuss how to make use of me now. I asked them to just leave me alone to help. I'm tired of this charade where I pretend to be something more than I am." She lowered her eyes momentarily, then continued. "They agreed," she said and grew quiet. Her quiet was countered by continued sounds from the artillery fire which had grown louder as they had made their way to the personnel hatch.

Kovic manually activated the personnel hatch controls built into the bulkhead and the hatch slid open. After the five quickly stepped through the hatch and into the armoured elevator, Kovic activated a control on the internal bulkhead, closing the hatch. He reached toward the control tower and began to select the activation key which would send them to the ground floor, but paused. "It will be bad out there," he said, looking at Gelika. "The bombardment has not let up for hours. Are you ready?"

She looked down at her bare feet for a moment and then pulled something that had been stuffed into a pocket in her loose tattered pants. The Sergeant did not recognize what she held until she began unwadding them in preparation for donning on her bare feet. It was a pair of badly worn flesh colored dance shoes. Their soles were rubber for traction and split for flexibility. Each sole also had some type of different material on the ball to presumably facilitate ease of turning. After slipping them over her feet, she gave a faint smile to the surprised men and then spoke. "I am ready now."

The elevator descended to the ground level, striking hard and stopping suddenly. Then, Kovic activated the hatch control and it slid open to a cacophony of sounds and the madness of a bombardment.


	5. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 4

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Imperial Guard interim compound

The cadre stepped out of the personnel elevator and onto the ground between the tracks of the _Magna Currum_. They were still beneath the mobile base, staring out into a scene of fire and smoke, with smoldering craters in the ground. Periodic explosions occurred and the incessant hum from the void shields of the Capitol Imperialis filled their ears. Sergeant Kovic looked across the grounds with a bit of pride to the defensive emplacement his men had helped install when their regiment had been assigned to garrison Essinar three years prior, before the insurrection began. Approximately one hundred fifty metres in the distance, the emplacement shielded a vehicle entrance to the tram sublevels of Essinar Metropolis. The void shields generated within were protecting the hatch, and would enable them to safely enter the under-city. "This will be risky," he yelled above the noise. "If we can't contact them with a vox...one of us...will need to cross the grounds...then contact the hatch crew...with the vox-box...if it's not wrecked," he continued, pausing periodically to take breaths and continue screaming above the explosions. "Then...we will need to wait for approval...and the rest of us...sprint across when the hatch opens..." The sergeant looked over at his companions, his voice having trailed off as he came to the realization that none of them were paying him any heed.

All their eyes were upon the Primaris Psyker. His eyes were closed, shrouded by the silver and blue inks of the runes and sigils tattooed into the skin of his face. He held his staff vertically in front of his body in both hands, one stacked over the other and a faint blue light emanated from the silver inlaid upon its burnt runes and sigils. Then, his eyes opened, flashing emerald. "Now!" he screamed and broke forward in a run toward the vehicle hatch.

The psyker led the way, effortlessly running while holding his staff, leaping over a smoldering crater. Overseer Terzo was right behind him. Immediately behind them were the Commissar and little Gelika, smoothly running across the uneven terrain. Sergeant Kovic immediately took off after them, his long strides quickly covering ground and easily dodging small holes and debris. As if the Emperor's divine Will were at play, there was a pause in the bombardment. Sergeant Kovic kept his eyes on those ahead of him as he ran in the footsteps of Commissar Treves and Gelika. If any in front of him were to fall, he would be there to help them up and keep them moving toward the hatch.

As always in battle, things began to move fast. Kovic could see the hatch beginning to open, rising in the distance, but he could also hear the sounds of the bombardment beginning again and creeping closer to them. Behind him, there was the great thundering of the engines to the _Magna Currum_ as the vehicle began to once again lumber forward. Kovic continued to sprint, but the metres they had covered were beginning to add up, and he was beginning to feel the burning in his lungs. Despite the pain, he focused his attention on those in front of him and kept running.

Little Gelika slipped momentarily, but kept running. The thought passed through Kovic's head that although she might move with the grace of a trained dancer, she had also been knocked unconscious by a blast a few hours earlier and buried beneath the resulting rubble. He watched closely, intent on leaving no one behind. Ahead, the psyker and his bodyguard were quickly pulling away and leaving them behind. The Commissar was losing ground too, but not nearly so fast.

Again, Gelika slipped. This time, however, she fell to the ground and was not so fast to rise. But, Kovic had immediately closed the distance and grabbed her arm, heaving her onto her feet and moving again without breaking stride. They did not have much farther to go and he could see the two in front duck under the partly lifted hatch with the Commissar in close pursuit.

"Keep running!" he shouted as he released her arm and continued to match her pace. The explosions were nearing, rising to a roar but he could thankfully hear the hum of the void shield guarding the hatch. But, Kovic realized time was beginning to run out as he could see the hatch begin lowering.

Finally, Kovic and Gelika closed the remaining metres and dove under the hatch with little time to spare as it came to the ground and locked in place behind them. The locking was immediately followed by an explosion, temporarily knocking out the void shield protecting the hatch. Soldiers who had been guarding the entrance quickly began to move about, resetting the shield, and checking their holo-vids and gauges.

Kovic angrily began to rise to his feet but was greeted with a smile and an open hand from the Overseer. "We knew you two would make it," he said with a laugh. Kovic nearly called out the lie, but with a thought toward the psyker, realized that perhaps it was the truth. He also contemplated that perhaps their fortunate timing with the bombardment was also something the psyker had foreseen.

"Yes, the timing was something I…felt," Brecht calmly stated as the Overseer helped Gelika to her feet too and began to look her over for injuries. Kovic grimaced at the psyker's words, but Brecht quickly added, "…and no, I did not look into your mind with my powers just then. Your thoughts were obvious."

Kovic straightened himself up and looked over at the Commissar, who was standing with his arms crossed, looking over the Sergeant. "You would have closed the hatch on me even if you thought I would be caught outside, wouldn't you?" Kovic asked him with a laugh. Then, realizing his error, added "…Commissar."

"You know I damn well would have, Sergeant," Treves responded flatly, but quickly followed with a smirk.

With a smile, Kovic began to muse over the brotherhood he shared with his fellow guardsmen, but the moment was broken by the voice of the psyker. "Your squad should be awaiting us at the munitorum on sublevel three," Brecht promptly stated. Without further words, they fell in following the psyker who had already begun to steadily march down the tram rails.


	6. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 5

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
3rd sublevel

Beneath tons of rock and concrete, the thunderous bombardment overhead was reduced to a muted rumble on sublevel three. As the team approached the munitorum, Sergeant Kovic recognized his squad waiting in the distance. His Communications Specialist, Riza Mannus, was standing in full gear and had already seen he and his companions approaching. The Heavy Equipment Specialist, Janus Herod stood out like a sore thumb as he was always animated and never stopped moving or talking. Kovic was also able to easily make out Misha Voss, the Heavy Weapons Specialist. She was a big girl and her combination of size and brute strength allowed her to handle with ease weapons that many would struggle to control. Then, there were the three greenhorns: Privates Mitre Canocic, Valen Sluka, and the youngest of them all, Linus Novus. Kovic had given Mannus and Voss the task of whipping them into shape. He couldn't imagine what the outcome would be if he had shouldered part of that responsibility on Herod.

The squad quickly lined up, which Kovic knew, meant that Mannus had recognized the Commissar from the distance. He looked over his squad while closing the final metres and realized that they had been fully outfitted for the first time since the Mazeroth traitor forces had landed on Essinar weeks ago. Their armour was unblemished and the Sergeant was shocked to see the weapon in the hands of Specialist Voss. She carried a double barreled boltgun, a Storm Bolter. Kovic had never known one to be issued to a guardsman and had thought them to exclusively be the province of the Adeptus Astartes. Apparently, the mission truly was of considerable importance to command such powers of requisition. Herod stood calmly but somehow managed to appear to Kovic as if he were about to burst out in laughter. Fortunately, the privates were in proper position of their own accord.

As the Sergeant and his companions stepped up, the squad quickly came to attention and saluted the Commissar. After quickly returning their salutes, Treves spoke up. "At ease, Troops. Sergeant Kovic, you have the floor." Then, he quickly stepped aside.

"Thank you, Commissar," the Sergeant responded and promptly stepped forward. After looking around to see if he was being observed, Kovic relayed to his squad what Colonel Minoc had earlier informed him of the mission. Then, he looked toward Gelika and spoke of her accompanying them. "Although we thought we saw Gelika killed this afternoon with our own eyes, it should now be obvious that was not the case. She was buried in the rubble but alive and well, Praise the Emperor," Then after a pause, he continued, "Her purpose in this mission is to aid the Warrant Officers as a guide." Kovic waited a moment for his briefing to settle amongst his men and then continued, "Any questions shall be directed to me and only to me. Understood?"

Kovic could not help but cringe as one of the Privates, Novus, raised his hand with the apparent intent of asking a question. "Sergeant, I don't understand. Why are we being asked to perform an extraction? Shouldn't that be a job for the Black Eagles, or at least a squad of storm troopers?" Voss shot the youth a look that promised death.

Kovic quickly and sternly responded. "I am not fielding questions about why we are being assigned to this mission or why someone else was not chosen to complete this mission. I don't give a damn whether or not we know why, and no one in the whole Imperium gives a damn whether or not we know why. I am fielding questions regarding whether or not you understand the nature of our mission and what is expected of you to achieve it. Because accomplishing our mission is the goal set before us, any questions asked should be regarding meeting that expectation," he finished and took a deep breath, waiting for anyone else to speak up.

Commissar Treves observed the ashamed look in the face of the Private, and removed his hand from the grip of his bolt pistol, noting that the Sergeant apparently had good command of his squad. Still, the knowledge that the issue of the Black Eagles Space Marines chapter and Battlefleet Aessina's failure to appear in theatre would need to be addressed sooner or later made him pause. Secretly and individually, each Commissar and each of the combined command staff save Colonel Minoc, the Commander of the Vorlossian Siege Infantry regiment this squad was a part of, had been informed of what had transpired and the words still resonated in his mind. _The Aessina Sector Battlefleet has been destroyed by the Brazen Devourers traitor chapter coupled with a renegade fleet of ships and traitors they gathered from the Calyx Expanse. The traitors were then engaged by the Black Eagles chapter over Vorloss itself. Each side annihilated the other and their chapter barques descended onto the planet, vaporizing its atmosphere, leaving it a dead and airless husk. Termination of parties to ensure loyalty will be a necessity when word of this spreads._ After recollecting those words, Commissar Treves gave a silent prayer to the Emperor that reinforcements from the Scarus Sector Battlefleet would be quickly marshaled and arrive in theater so as to give assurances to the men. Maintaining discipline until their arrival would be critical.

"We will immediately move to the tram station past the medicae company," interjected the psyker. "While transporting via tram to our departure point, I will discuss our path with Mistress Gelika and then inform you of what will be required," he continued, clearly speaking to the Sergeant. Without another word, he turned and began walking toward the depot. The squad followed.

As the squad came upon the mobile field hospital stationed on the subterranean tracks they were greeted by the overwhelming smell of blood. The squad grew completely silent as one of the Samaritans, medical vehicles built upon the chassis of a Chimera APC, arrived and unloaded its cargo of wounded guardsmen. There was much blood on the ground, and to the horror of the squad there were wheelbarrows awaiting. Those with potential to survive were wheeled on cots into the hospital. Those who could not be helped were given the _Emperor's Mercy_ and, along with those who had previously expired, were thrown into a wheelbarrow to be carted away and dumped in a trash compactor after having their equipment removed and catalogued. Even in a bloody siege, proper record keeping was a requirement of the Departmento Munitorum.

 _Surely, the Blood God is smiling right now,_ thought the psyker as he passed the pile of corpses. _Perhaps we will be able to strike a blow in return._


	7. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 6

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
3rd sublevel Tram

The Tram car worked its way through the darkness of the 3rd sublevel of Essinar, its cyclopean light illuminating the tracks before it like the lidless stare of some mighty navigator. The Commissar and NCOs were seated in two bench seats, facing each other as Sergeant Kovic studied the vid representation displayed on the dataslate in the psyker's hands. Upon catching the psyker's eye, he spoke, "Perhaps we should ask Gelika to join us now?" The psyker looked over Kovic's shoulder into the back of the tram car and Kovic turned around to look over his squad at the same time. They were all standing, holding onto the evenly spaced stability bars. Gelika was standing too, eyes closed and apparently asleep even as her bruised body slowly rocked to the motion of the tram. Kovic laughed. "She may be a civilian, but by the way she can sleep standing up on a moving tram, you would think she is a seasoned Imperial Veteran."

"Let her sleep," responded the psyker. "I believe she will be important in leading us to the extraction point. Once we are on our feet and attempting to weave through the passageways without alerting the Mazeroth forces to our presence, it will be crucial for her to be focused on the task at hand." With that, the psyker continued to scroll through the vid representations of where the more recently constructed sublevels met with the under-city, the buried remnants of Old Essinar. "Her guidance will be crucial as there are gaps where the vid-reps should meet and overlap. We are in Alpha District now. Once we finish passing through and enter Beta District, we will exit the tram and reassess our plan in preparation for entering Gamma District on foot." With that last bit, Brecht powered down his dataslate and sat back into his bench seat.

The Primaris Psyker and his Overseer simultaneously looked up and past Kovic. The Sergeant and Commissar each responded in unison, turning around to see who was approaching. Worry crept into Kovic's mind as he saw Herod's friendly face and that the entire squad was closely watching from the back. More importantly, Kovic noted out of the corner of his eye that the Commissar had taken hold of his bolt pistol. Gelika was still apparently asleep on her feet.

Herod gave a warm smile that only served to heighten Kovic's apprehension and spoke up in his friendliest voice that removed all doubt from the Sergeant's mind that he might have something to worry about. "I just wanted to say I,…we, appreciate having the opportunity to serve with you, Primaris Psyker Brecht and Overseer Kryseis," he finished and added a small laugh. "We have rarely had the opportunity to be properly equipped to our hearts' desires and would like to thank you for that. However, there is something more important that I believe we need to discuss before going further." Whether Herod was oblivious to the fact the Commissar had unholstered his bolt pistol or didn't care, Kovic didn't know, but he felt a little more at ease as he had heard this speech before. "Since we will be going into battle together, you should know that each one of us will be ready to lay our lives down for yours. We are all brothers here. So, I would like to welcome each of you into our squad," he finished as he reached out his hand to shake that of the psyker. Kovic nearly laughed aloud. No one was as good at working relationships as Janus Herod and, to the Sergeant's pleasure, the look of shock at being treated as a comrade was a clear indication that it had an effect upon the psyker. In response, Brecht tentatively reached out his hand and then firmly shook that of Herod. The Overseer followed suit. Then, Herod looked over at the Commissar and spoke again. "We will lay our lives down for you too, Commissar Treves." Then he laughed and added, "I am just not sure how the enlisted-commissioned interaction rules work for shaking hands and such in situations such as this, so I didn't offer…Sir"

"You thought correctly," answered the Commissar. Kovic noted that there would have been a certain amount of awkwardness in Herod reaching out to take the hand in which the Commissar was holding the bolt pistol he was about to point at the specialist's head.

"Well, we know a considerable bit about each other and I have a feeling that you have familiarized yourselves with our dossiers," said Herod as he began a line of questioning that surprised even Kovic. "But, we know nothing of you two, Primaris Psyker Brecht and Overseer Terzo. Would you do the honor of filling us in on yourselves as we just might lay our lives down for yours today?" As he had continued speaking, the rest of the squad had moved up and gathered around Herod.

To the Sergeant's amusement, the psyker still seemed at a complete loss for this situation. Apparently, thought Kovic, Brecht had spent his entire life with people running from him in fear. Kovic admitted to himself, he probably would have been one to do so. But, there was no one else like Herod in the Imperium. Fortunately for the psyker, the Overseer spoke up. "My full name is Kryseis Terzo and as far as I know, my friend here has always been Brecht, and only Brecht." He paused for a moment, checking the psyker's response and then continued. "We are both from the Pologram Sector in the Segmentum Ultima. I was born and raised on an orbital station named _Muscovy_ and Brecht was born on Pologram Majoris." The Overseer paused again, looking toward the psyker, and then continued. "We came to the Segmentum Solar on the same voyage but I do not believe you will be able to convince me or the Primaris Psyker to divulge any details of that journey." Kovic noted the strain in the Overseer's words and, as he came to realize that trip was on one of the dreaded Black Ships sent to collect those with psychic potential and bring them to Holy Terra, he couldn't help but wonder if the stories of suffering were true. Kovic could feel everyone else sensed it too as the group grew quiet and the conversation came to a halt.

But, nothing could stop Janus Herod. "I bet that if we can get him in the sack with Misha here, that she can coax it out of him," he said with a laugh. Without a moment's hesitation, the big girl belted Herod in the back of his head with her fist. "But…, for the squad?" came Herod's verbal jab in response to Misha's real threat of force.

Misha drew back her fist again and Herod gave an exaggerated flinch. "Not on your life," she snapped back. Then, catching herself and realizing she was discussing this with Herod in the presence of the man being discussed, she turned toward Brecht and said, "No offense intended."

Somewhat confused and overwhelmed, the psyker responded, "None taken," and then grew quiet again.

Before anything else could be said, the tram ground to a halt and a disembodied voice came through the vox-box. "Transit aborted." Looking ahead, Kovic could see that the tram had been blocked by a makeshift emplacement and two squads were set up with a belt-fed tripod mounted heavy bolter on each side of the rails. Kovic instinctively realized this meant that the battle lines had moved and their way would not be so clear.

The squad readied to move and waited patiently as the Commissar went out and began speaking to the guardsmen. After a few moments he returned to the interior of the tram. "The traitors have broken the containment line, taken the generatorium in Gamma Sector thanks to one of the Tech-Priests turning traitor, flooded the sublevels beneath it with their forces, and appear ready to enter Beta Sector," stated the Commissar in a weary tone. "We will be on foot now. It will be very rough from here on out."

Kovic watched the Overseer and Primaris Psyker exchanging glances, and correctly surmised that they were having a telepathic conversation. _Clearly the Ruinous Powers are at work here_ , spoke the disembodied voice in the Overseer's head _. Perhaps the Changer of Ways has been manipulating this through the servants of the Blood God, oblivious to the true nature of the events they are participating in. I expect that even as we speak here they are searching the remnants of the Cardinal District of the Old City for our mark. I fear we may be too late. We must hurry._ With no notion of what was being said between the two, the Sergeant noted that the Overseer nodded in response to whatever was being communicated to him.

"Bring Gelika to me, now," spoke the psyker with a voice that gave no room for hesitation. However, her retrieval was not required as she had quietly awoken and had joined the group with no one noticing. Showing no sign of surprise, Brecht quickly opened his dataslate and began showing the vid-reps to Gelika. "We need to work our way through Beta District and into Gamma District. Then, we need to make our way down through the sublevels and into the remnants of the Cardinal District of the Old City." After giving her a moment to look over the vid-reps, he continued, "The resistance should be fierce. My hope is that you know these areas well, especially the gaps in the reps. That might be our only hope in being able to avoid the heaviest resistance. What say you?"

The young girl, bruises and all, methodically thumbed through the vid-reps displayed by the dataslate as if she were a learned scholar and then she spoke. "Your vid-reps are incorrect. The Cardinal District of the old City is not beneath the Gamma District sublevels."

Kovic broke in after her words. "Primaris Psyker Brecht, do you know whether our extraction mark is under the Gamma Sector sublevels or wherever the Cardinal Sector actually is?"

"She is either in the Cardinal Sector of the Old City or someone else has beaten us to her," said the psyker in a flat voice. With that said, the Brecht turned toward Gelika and continued, "Would you proceed to explain exactly where the Cardinal District can be found, Gelika?"

"Underneath Delta District. I am familiar with a route through the generatorium where the vid-cap boxes became disabled long ago. We should be able to pass through there unnoticed and into the sublevels beneath the Ezrael Performing Arts Center in Delta District. From there I should be able to take you to wherever you wish to go. I am quite familiar with the area."

"Well then, let's begin by discussing our route to the generatorium. It will be imperative you aid in familiarizing the squad members with the area now, using the vid-reps. They must be familiar enough so as to be able to react to any threats we may encounter en route to your way through the generatorium."


	8. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 7

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Gamma District generatorium maintenance access

Sergeant Kovic took careful note of the surroundings his squad passed through. The maintenance access passageway that they had taken was so narrow as to reduce them to moving in single file. The lighting string running overhead only functioned at intermittent points, illuminating a dirty corridor containing scurrying rats and scattered debris that had most likely been left by vagrants. Gelika had pointed out to them that this access had seen little use since larger and newer accesses had been recently built and that she and her friends had played games in these same passageways when she was but a child. Kovic noted that she was little more than a child now in form although she was handling the responsibilities laid before her better than he figured most adults would manage. He regarded that as particularly noteworthy when coupled with the punishment her body had taken earlier in the day.

They had stopped again, periodically moving and stopping as Privates Canocic and Sluka scouted ahead, looking for trouble. Being ambushed while in single file was a recipe for disaster they hoped to avoid and they repeatedly waited for the two to return with their report as the tunnels hindered their com-boxes. Suddenly, the psyker spoke up. "We must hurry forward, now," he stated as a matter of fact and pressed the Sergeant ahead.

The squad, led by the Sergeant, emerged into an intersection with the two Privates standing over a pile of debris and alertly looking about. Noting that the pile of debris was a blanket with blood trailing away into the left corridor of the intersection, the Sergeant spoke, "Report, Privates."

Private Canocic spoke up, "It appears that perhaps a vagrant was sleeping here and he was taken by someone or something. I can't tell what, though."

The Sergeant quickly turned to Gelika and questioned, "Do you know of anything populating the tunnels that can do such a thing?"

Gelika looked sadly at the blanket and trail of blood for a moment before answering, "We only encountered rats and vagrants down here. Well, we also saw the cleaning servitors from time to time, but they ignored us for the most part." She paused and then continued, "One tried to sweep Jeri up one time, but it didn't hurt him. It didn't really seem to notice him other than as something to be swept up."

"The tech-priest," spoke up the Overseer. Seeing he had their attention, he continued, "In order for him to have taken control of the generatorium, I would wager he…reassigned…the duties of the servitors. With any luck, he has reassigned their duties but has not had the means or opportunity to have armed them with lasguns and such." Sergeant Kovic listened and recognized the logic in the Overseer's statements.

"We will continue ahead and deal with the servitors when necessary," added Brecht. "As we are leaving behind the path the servitor took, I suggest we pay extra heed to our rear guard." With that, he turned and began moving down the hall again, not waiting for the Privates to lead the way.

"Voss," commanded Kovic, "You and Novus take the rear. Novus, keep your bayonet ready so as to clear firing room for Voss." Then with a laugh, he continued, "I have been waiting to see what that storm bolter can do, Specialist Voss. Don't disappoint me."

"Yes, Sergeant. Have I ever disappointed you?" she responded.

"Wow!" exclaimed Herod. "Is there something you haven't been telling us about, Voss?" Her face turned to anger and she drew her fist back but Specialist Mannus was already between Voss and Herod. Not stopping there, Herod spoke up and down the corridor to Brecht, "Primaris Psyker Brecht, I think you might owe me a considerable debt of gratitude once Voss coaxes you into telling us about that trip to Holy Terra…if you know what I mean."

Brecht did not respond and Voss looked as frustrated as she was angry, but Kovic paid them little heed and nervously eyed the Commissar. To the Sergeant's relief, Commissar Treves appeared perplexed. Apparently he had been intent on keeping the squad from not fragging the psyker and was not sure how to respond to them including Brecht in their friendly banter. The Sergeant decided to put an end to the banter despite its entertainment value. "Everyone, knock it off! Now!"

As they continued down the maintenance access, Kovic took note of Gelika who was walking right behind him. "Shouldn't you be up front? I thought that Primaris Psyker Brecht said this access was not included in his vid-reps."

"He is communicating with me as we go," she said as a simple matter of fact, again surprising the Sergeant. Kovic could not imagine so easily dismissing having a psyker entering his mind.

"We have company," came Voss' voice from behind the Sergeant. Her notice was immediately followed by the sound of her storm bolter releasing its fury in a short burst, its report overpowered by the explosions of its rounds as they entered their target. "Damn!" Voss continued. "I got'em, but there's more, and coming fast!"

The Sergeant looked over his shoulder and down the access. He saw Voss' silhouette standing with Novus' silhouette kneeling before her. Coming toward them was a horde of servitors. He could hardly make out their individual bodies as they approached, only discerning their undulating fists and knees as they ran, overlooked by their lobotomized heads. For a moment all else seemed to stop. "Time is of the essence!" Kovic heard Brecht scream from the front, followed by the sound of many footsteps. Who was racing down the hallway, he could not make out as his attention was fully on the trouble behind.

Kovic pulled his laspistol and began unloading on the oncoming horde to little effect. He noted that Novus was firing his lasgun with little difference in effect while Mannus had taken a grenade into her hand and was awaiting the right moment to release it. Then, Voss let loose the full fury of her storm bolter. As the reports and explosions echoed, pieces of bone and flesh began flying away from the running carcasses. Where the approaching servitors shrugged with the impacts of fire from Kovic's laspistol and Novus' lasgun, they exploded into a gory mass of flesh and bone and teeth as the rounds from the storm bolter took them. Still, the servitors kept approaching as Voss continued to churn them into heaps of flesh, bone, and metal. Then there was a great explosion as Mannus' grenade detonated and all grew quiet.

"Damn! That was awesome!" Voss proudly proclaimed as she began reloading her bolter. Novus and Mannus just stared at her while Kovic looked over the carnage in the corridor. "If it means I can keep this gun, I might just have to get that psyker in the sack after all," Voss added, shocking everyone. Then, Voss looked up and past Kovic with a bit of confusion. "Where'd everybody go?"

Quickly reassessing the situation, Kovic tersely responded, "Down the corridor! Now!" and broke into a run with the remainder of his squad following him.


	9. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 8

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Gamma District generatorium control center

Kovic and his squad broke into the control room of the generatorium to see a most unusual sight. The traitor mechanicus was standing transfixed, face to face with Brecht. He was basically a man in appearance, wearing red robes, but with a great electromechanical arm extruding from his back and countless electrodes embedded within his head. Such was the nature of those who worshipped the Omnissiah machine god in their search for knowledge and how to operate the myriad machines of the Imperium. Brecht stood before the tech-priest, staring intently back, both of his hands holding his staff, while a faint blue glow emitted from its runes and sigils. Off to the side were two Mazeroth guardsmen, curled into fetal position on the ground with blood puddled around the head of each and Commissar Treves standing over them with his bolt pistol in hand. Oddly, the Overseer held his helmet in hand while adjusting his skullcap and looked as if he were about to pass out from exhaustion. Most odd of all the sights, Private Canocic was sitting at one of the consoles underneath a vid and working the controls.

"What do you guys need me here for?" added Private Sluka in a dumbfounded voice.

Before Kovic could inquire, the Commissar snapped with a response. "Quickly, Private. Find the radiation gear. Now!" The Commissar turned to Kovic and continued. "Your other Private had an idea. He thinks we should make the generatorium explode and the psyker agreed." Kovic noted that Treves sounded on edge regarding something and hoped it was not regarding one of his squad. "Any questions, I suggest you direct to the Navigator, I mean Overseer."

It took a moment for what the Commissar said to register in Kovic's mind and then it suddenly made sense to him. Those who possessed the navigator gene had a third eye in the middle of their forehead which allowed them to guide the great spacecraft through the Warp when traversing the great distances of the void and that was why the Overseer was wearing a fabric skullcap. But, Kovic was still at a loss for why one with such powers would be wasted in the Imperial Guard as an Overseer.

"Ha! I knew I could get it," cried out Private Canocic. "My Pa taught me a whole lot more than he should have," he added with excitement. "Primaris Psyker Brecht, I have performed the rituals to reach the firewall. Now, we need the tech-priest to enter the liturgy and change the reactor settings. Then I will put a timer to it and we will need to get out of here." Canocic was new to his squad but the Private's words reminded him that he had already told them stories of his father working as a reclaimator in one of the many generatoria on Vorloss and that the Private had proudly proclaimed his father could do as much or more than any of the tech-priests.

Suddenly the mechanical arm protruding from the tech-priest's back came to life and everyone moved into a defensive position, Canocic diving from his chair. However, it didn't move to harm anyone. Instead, the arm began to work the controls, all the while the tech-priest and the psyker continued staring into each other's eyes. Various lights flickered on the vid-screen and then a red bar appeared, stretching across the bottom of the screen. Canocic nervously moved back into the seat and began working the controls again. Suddenly a large timer appeared and a disembodied voice filled the room. "Tee minus 1 hour and counting." The timer initially measured one hour and began to count down the seconds, the red bar blinking each time a second counted off.

Suddenly the arms of the tech-priest flexed and then its entire body tensed. Brecht continued to calmly stare into its face. Suddenly, its head exploded into a mass of electrodes, brains, and blood that spattered upon everyone in the room. The tech-priest crumpled to the ground. Kovic noted from the burn on his cheek that the tech-priest's blood and brains had been boiling within his head when it exploded. The Overseer and Gelika seemed to not be bothered in the least but everyone else, including the Commissar, was momentarily frozen in shock. Voss looked sick, as if about to vomit.

"Our extraction mark is not very mobile and removing her with the Mazeroth forces occupying this district would be difficult to say the least," stated Brecht in a calm manner as if he had just sipped a morning tea. "This will make completing the extraction easier and at the same time should go a long way toward helping our Imperial forces secure the city against the traitors. Now Gelika, are you prepared to lead us into the Cardinal District of Old Essinar?"


	10. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 9

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
Delta District sublevels beneath Ezrael Performing Arts Center

The squad made its way down the darkened corridor, the only light coming from the lamps on their helmets. Each carried a rad-suit, waiting to don it at the last moment so as to not interfere with their ability to fight. As he walked, Sergeant Kovic waited impatiently for word from Privates Canocic and Sluka who were again working their way in front of the squad, remaining roughly thirty metres ahead and waiting whenever they reached an intersection. Specialist Voss and Private Novus again were covering the rear. Kovic noted that Herod, immediately in front of Voss and Novus, was unusually quiet for a change. Mannus walked beside Herod and was constantly monitoring her vox-box for word from the Privates.

Kovic tried to pay attention to his surroundings and see what guidance his squad members might need but he knew time was counting down on the generatorium reactor and concentration was difficult for him. Against his better judgement, Kovic's attention kept drifting toward the conversation between Gelika and Primaris Psyker Brecht occurring in front of him.

"My Mother served as one of the chief entertainers in the court of Agio Belcourt, the planetary governor before she was killed in the first bomb raid of the insurrection. Through her I gained admittance to the Ezrael Performing Arts Center and even managed an invitation to perform during the week celebrating the last _Emperor's Gift_ before the insurrection came to Essinar," she finished sounding sad. "During our studies, my friends and I learned of the crypts in the remnants of the _Old City_ and decided to try to find our way down to them. I miss those adventures," she said. "Mother was strict and the training was difficult but I always felt at peace exploring the chambers down there with my friends. After Mother was killed, I just wanted to help however I could."

Kovic noted that the psyker was nodding thoughtfully as if her words had meaning to him other than the prattling of a teen girl. "So, you are very certain we will soon reach an access stairwell and that access will lead us into the _Old City_?" Gelika nodded in response to the psyker's queries. "Most importantly, I am placing our safety in this matter on your judgement, after turning round and bout going down the access will we be under the Arts Center or under the generatorium when we make our way into the crypt area of the _Cardinal District_?"

Kovic watched Gelika closely as did Brecht. She looked very worried and answered, "I…think so," and then tried to force a smile.

"Have faith in the Emperor, young one," came the fatherly response from the psyker. Kovic knew that Primaris Psykers were the battle psykers of the Imperium, making them some of the most dangerous individuals who would take the field in service to the Emperor, even more so than a space marine in many cases. However, the varied manner in which he watched Brecht deal with people led him to believe the psyker had duties that extended beyond what had been officially relayed to him by Colonel Minoc. He rationalized that might be somehow related to the fact that the psyker's Overseer was a navigator.

Almost on cue from the Sergeant's musing, "We are here," came Overseer Terzo's voice from in front. The two privates were there, standing ready and alert at the entrance to an old stairwell whose doors had long ago been removed. "How much time, Brecht?"

"We are perilously short on time. Roughly fifteen minutes. Gelika, to the front with me now and we run. Lead!" The Privates moved out of the way long enough for the two to take the lead from them and then followed, even before the Commissar and Overseer could file in. Kovic noted that he had drilled his squad over and over but nothing made men move like true danger and the danger of the generatorium reactor going critical was about as great a danger as he could imagine. The squad swiftly moved down the access stairwell.


	11. The Blood God Smiled: Chapter 10

Aessina Heresy  
591.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Insurrection at Essinar Metropolis  
remnants of Cardinal District of Old Essinar

Little Gelika and Brecht led the squad through the myriad passageways of the _Cardinal District of the Old City_. The passageways were constructed of finely worked masonry rather than the common and strong materials used in the construction of the great cities. The Sergeant worried that the primitive construction he and his squad were passing through might not hold up nearly so well as the newer constructions they had left when the reactor went critical.

"I think we are being followed," came the youthful voice of Private Novus in the back.

Before the Sergeant could respond, the psyker answered from in front. "Do not falter or stop!"

Kovic was momentarily angered at the break in chain of command with the psyker answering his soldier instead of giving him the answer to relay to Novus but held his mouth shut. Pragmatism outweighed the chain of command in this circumstance. The Sergeant noted that those in front of him had picked up their feet into a jog and quickly spoke up to those behind as he followed suit, "Pick up the pace! Now!"

They kept the pace until Kovic suddenly stepped into an open and circular crypt lit by some form of permanent lighting mounted on the wall. "Hold, Now! Take positions!" he yelled to his squad members behind him and still outside as he stood in the entranceway. The psyker stood in the middle of the crypt staring intently at a sarcophagus against the crypt wall to the left with the Overseer and Gelika at his side. The Commissar had moved to the right against the wall and covered that entrance while the two Privates had stationed themselves on either side of the opposite entranceway.

An object flew through the air, splitting the distance between the two Privates and landed in the middle of the room, rolling to the feet of Brecht. Kovic noted the psyker stared down at it in a confused fashion as if he were clueless how to act now that his precognition had failed him. Before Kovic could say something, Private Sluka reacted. "Grenade!" he screamed and dove into the middle of the floor and wrapped himself around it. No sooner than he managed to do so, than the grenade exploded, and pieces of shrapnel and Private Sluka were strewn throughout the room with the concussion knocking everyone down.

Kovic quickly regained his composure, drew his laspistol, and raised to one knee. Las and bolter fire erupted outside the crypt but the Sergeant was too intent upon the situation in front of him to pay it heed. The Overseer was sitting on the floor clutching his abdomen with blood spilling out. Over him, the psyker was dancing in a battle with a brute of a man in heavy armour who was swinging a sword whose blade crackled with the energy of a disruption field, a power sword. Arcs flew as the psyker's staff, sigils and runes glowing in blue, struck and blocked the brute's blade surrounded by a similar, but crackling, blue glow. Gelika was crouched in a corner where the sarcophagus met the wall. Commissar Treves was dancing with a Mazeroth guardsman, a chainsword in one hand while he shot down the entranceway with his bolt pistol. The traitorous guardsman had a chainsword himself and sparks flew as their blades bit into each other. Private Canocic was crouched at the edge of the opposite entranceway, firing into the darkness.

The Sergeant flinched as a shot from a lasgun struck the wall beside him. He quickly fired into the corridor's darkness beyond Private Canocic and drew a grenade. "Hold your position!" he yelled to those outside.

The Commissar and Mazeroth guardsman continued to dance around each other but it was clear to both that if Treves was not partly occupied by giving cover fire with his offhand that the duel would be short-lived.

Still, the psyker and armoured brute danced in the middle of the room around the Overseer and Private Sluka's helmet which still contained his head. "Your powers are of no use against me, sorcerer!" bellowed the giant as he recklessly swung. "She will be my trophy, not yours!"

"I am no sorcerer," screamed the psyker in return, strain evident in his voice. He fluidly moved around, redirecting the brute's blows with his staff time and again, displaying a skill in arms that Kovic had not dreamed the psyker possessed. But, despite his skills, blows from the power sword were managing to break through with small nicks and cuts that left terrible wounds. It appeared to only be a matter of time before the psyker fell.

Deciding that freeing the Commissar was the most prudent course of action, Kovic tossed his grenade past the two figures dancing with chainswords and into the darkness. The explosion lit the hallway beyond for a moment and was followed by darkness and the screams of pain from the Mazeroth guardsmen in it.

Suddenly, the world turned upside down and everyone lost their footing. Everyone except the psyker. Kovic watched from his back as the psyker stood over the brute and drove home the end of his staff into the brute's exposed throat. Then, he commenced to repeatedly swing the staff into the helmeted man's facemask until it cracked and splintered open, exposing his face which was then beaten into a pulp.

After a moment, Kovic realized that the reactor had gone critical and exploded. He leapt to his feet and moved toward the opposite side of the entranceway Private Canocic was covering. Both the Commissar and his foe had regained their footing but it was apparent that Treves would quickly dispatch the Mazeroth guardsman now that his attention was no longer split firing down the entranceway he had chosen to guard. Bolter and lasgun fire once again erupted outside the entranceway that Kovic had come in through.

Brecht looked toward the Overseer, his fallen comrade, and stood tall with anger in his eyes. His staff, held in his right hand, glowed blue and he pointed his left down the entranceway between Kovic and Canocic. A great wave of flame erupted from his outstretched fingertips and briefly filled the corridor beyond, leaving only darkness, silence, and the sweet smell of charred human flesh.

Brecht next turned toward his gaze toward the guardsman that the Commissar was proceeding to make short work of. The guardsman burst into flame and then turned into ash in the matter of a split second. The Commissar held his bolt pistol for a moment, contemplating taking aim at the psyker but dread froze him in place. Brecht turned and looked out the entranceway where the bolter fire and lasgun fire were continuing.

Recognizing the precarious situation, Kovic spoke up. "Take it easy, big guy," he said as calmly as he could manage. "We promised to give our lives for you today and Private Sluka did so. Don't ruin that."

Brecht turned around and faced the Sergeant. "You think that because of what I have just done I am somehow on the edge of madness or reaching so far into the Warp as to bring daemons down upon our heads?" he said with an angry barb. Then, in the same flat voice he had repeatedly used throughout the day, he continued, "You know nothing regarding the extent of my powers." Then, with the weight of his injuries from the power sword suddenly striking home, he collapsed to one knee beside his friend, Overseer Terzo. Still sitting upright and clutching his abdomen, the Overseer leaned onto the psyker.

The Commissar appeared to still be ready and fire his bolt pistol into the psyker's head, but spoke to Kovic. "My count says that I still have one shot left. I can make it count, if need be."

Kovic spoke up. "No need. We still have not completed our mission to escort the Primaris Psyker and his Overseer while they perform this extraction. It will be difficult to explain that you put a bolter round into your own head in order to keep yourself from fragging the psyker," he said with a laugh. The Commissar laughed in response. "Canocic, check their wounds and do what you can to stop the bleeding."

With that, Kovic hurried to the doorway he had entered through and outside of which fire was still being exchanged. "What's the trouble?" he asked while looking around the corner.

Mannus, lying on the ground, yelled over her shoulder in between firing shots from her lasgun. "Voss' storm bolter jammed up on her. She is trying to break it loose now." Private Novus and Herod were also lying down to give a low profile as they fired. It appeared to Kovic, Novus had been struck in the leg.

Finally, Voss worked the storm bolter free and began to fire down the corridor. The explosions echoed through the level as the rounds exploded into the wall corners the Mazeroth guardsmen were hiding behind, eating them away, and allowing the next rounds to take their human targets. In a manner of moments, it was over.

"Herod, Novus, double tap anyone left out there. Voss, Mannus, cover them," Kovic quickly ordered. After a few minutes all was clear and everyone gathered in the crypt.

The Primaris Psyker and his Overseer sat in the middle of the floor, back to back, with blood leaking from various wounds, the worst being the Overseer's from the brute's power sword when he first entered the crypt. Canocic had the remains of a medpac spread out on the floor and was trying to see if he could make any more use of it. Gelika was on her knees looking at the sarcophagus. The Commissar stood by himself, bolt pistol still in hand. The rest filed in behind Kovic.

"Primaris Psyker Brecht, you matched blows pretty well with that damn brute," spoke the Commissar in a complimentary fashion as he looked at the two Warrant Officers sitting back to back on the floor of the crypt. "I take it your being able to sense someone's moves makes you pretty good in a fight."

"He was a blank," the psyker responded hoarsely. "I couldn't sense him or even know he was there without seeing him. It was all I could do to keep him from killing me and that was thanks to my training. Fortunately, I was still able to sense when the reactor would go critical despite being in his presence. That gave me the advantage I needed." He spoke with his eyes closed.

Herod spoke and asked what everyone had been thinking. "Well, I hope we didn't kill our mark when the reactor went critical."

"I'm quite certain we didn't," the Overseer said flatly. Then, pointing at the sarcophagus Gelika was looking over, he continued. "Saint Aessina has already been dead for over one thousand years." He wheezed and coughed up some blood.

Herod fumed and Kovic knew trouble was brewing. "You said an extraction!" he screamed at Brecht. "Sluka died to save your neck and you lied to us!" Kovic tensed as he noticed how swiftly the Commissar's hand rose from his side, pointing his bolt pistol at Herod's head.

"Boy, you need to calm down!" came the words out of the Commissar's mouth like ice. "The victory we just won is the only reason you are not dead right now. I still have one round left before I reload. It has your name on it."

The tension was palpable in the air, but was broken by the psyker's voice. "Gelika, don't." Everyone's attention turned to see Gelika on her knees, hands on the side of the sarcophagus, apparently working some mechanism or other. She didn't stop.

Faster than anyone could move or speak, the Commissar switched his aim from Herod's head to that of Gelika and pulled the trigger. There was an audible click but the bolt pistol did not fire. Treves looked askance at his bolt pistol for a moment and then pointed it back at Gelika's head and pulled the trigger in rapid succession. Click. Click. Click. "I was certain I had one shot left," he stammered. Then, he quickly pointed his bolt pistol at the crypt wall and pulled again. The bolt pistol fired and its round exploded against the wall, stunning everyone. The Commissar stared for a moment at his bolt pistol and then quickly replaced the magazine with a full one. "This never happened," he said.

Suddenly everyone's attention turned back to Gelika who had never stopped working the mechanism. Suddenly, a compartment running the length of the bottom of the sarcophagus opened. The young girl looked over at Brecht with a confused look on her face as if she did not understand what she was doing.

At Brecht's urging, Kovic quickly moved to help the injured psyker scoot over to Gelika's side and caught a glimpse of what lay within the compartment. Kovic saw three large swords, possibly sized for a Space Marine, with curved blades. Each sword had arcane circuitry that, to Kovic's untrained eye, some of which were reminiscent of the psyker's force staff while others were reminiscent of the arcane circuitry on the power sword of the brute lying in the floor with his head smashed in. There was also a spear, sized for a typical human, that was marked with similar arcane circuitry. Behind the weapons were four large tomes, bound in what appeared to be iron and silver.

"Thank you, young one," said the psyker, reverting to his calm and flat voice as he slid his body over and obscured Kovic's view of the inner compartment. The psyker then reached into the compartment and actuated something. Suddenly, there was a whirring sound and the entire sarcophagus floated to about one metre off the ground. The psyker closed the compartment and placed his hand on the exterior of the sarcophagus, using it to help him to his feet.

Gelika hopped to her feet and stood beside Kovic. "The Emperor wills it so," she said in the calm voice he remembered from earlier in the day. A voice which sounded as if it should be coming from the mouth of a noblewoman.

Everyone looked at the young orphan for a moment and then Brecht spoke again. "We have won a great victory today," he began. "Not just a small victory in this small battle here between the Imperium and the forces that wish to tear it asunder that we have helped to accomplish by destroying many of the Mazeroth forces with the destruction of the generatorium's reactor, but a great victory. Recovering these relics will go a long way in furthering the work of spreading the Emperor's Will throughout the galaxy." Even wounded as he was, the psyker was able to manage making his voice sound grand. "I thank you all for the services you have rendered. Most of all, I thank Private Sluka who willingly gave his life for mine, just as Specialist Herod had promised to me you would."

"Praise the Emperor," proclaimed Kovic and everyone followed suit in praising him, then everyone grew quiet for a moment and lowered their heads.

"Will you live, Kryseis?" the psyker asked his Overseer.

"I think I might," he responded with a laugh.

Private Canocic spoke up and added, "Perhaps we should suit up in our rad-suits now."


	12. The Blood God Smiled: Epilogus

Aessina Heresy Conclusion  
592.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector

Forcing the generatorium's reactor to go critical and explode crushed a large portion of the Mazeroth forces on Essinar. Those not destroyed, but in the vicinity, were forced to flee into the waiting defences of the Vorlossian Siege Infantry regiment. They were massacred. Prior to that, the mighty Black Eagles Space Marines chapter and their nemesis, the renegade Brazen Devourers, had achieved each other's destruction and brought the hive world of Vorloss with them into oblivion as a lifeless and airless husk. The once proud planet of Mazera was left dead and barren after the Scarus Sector Battlefleet had arrived in system and commenced _Exterminatus_ upon its inhabitants with an orbital bombardment. Finally, after a year of fighting, the Aessina heresy was declared officially ended. With significant damage to its capital and its surrounding systems destroyed, Essinar was dying. A candle in the vastness of space, slowly burning out, leaving behind only the darkness of the void. And, the Blood God smiled, because…

 **Regardless of who wins a battle or war, the Blood God always wins.**


	13. The Blood GoD Smiled: Post Scriptum

Aessina Heresy Aftermath  
593.M38  
Segmentum Obscurus, Aessina Sector  
Capitol Imperialis _Magna Currum_

Colonel Minoc sat at his desk, pondering the many responsibilities lain upon his shoulders, while scrolling through the vid-reps on his dataslate.

The reclaimators had become restless. It was their duty to return the public works of the metropolis to working order and they needed new parts and supplies to do so. Parts and supplies that were not coming.

Ichard, the artisan responsible for redesigning the public works infrastructure was difficult to deal with. He wished the entire mess of the generatorium to have been cleaned up and removed yesterday so that he could have a clean slate to determine his coordinates for his new design.

The Sisters of the Order of Hospitallers were doing a remarkable job with the mimimal supplies available to them, but they needed more to treat the many still suffering from long term injuries.

The Schola Progenium had assigned a small number of Drill Abbots to begin training the many orphans for service to the Imperium, but not enough. The Ecclesiarchy had even requisitioned the services of some of his best Sergeants, including Davis Kovic, to supplement their ranks of Drill Abbots.

He still had to deal with the two Inquisitorial Throne Agents in the midst of his regiment. Inquisitor Domingus had been stationed upon Vorloss when it was razed and she had perished with it. So the psyker had informed him. Now, with no inquisitor for them to serve and give new direction to the Departmento Munitorum, they remained in his regiment.

The latter brought him to the problem weighing most heavily upon his mind. Vorloss, his home world and that of his regiment, was nothing more than an airless and dead husk of a planet. With no home world to support its forces, there was only a matter of time before his regiment was disbanded. His men would be dispersed and spread throughout the Imperium, supplementing the countless other siege infantry regiments of the Imperial Guard.

Colonel Minoc's musings were suddenly interrupted by Adept Sharinne, the Prefect Secundus Militant assigned to his regiment by the Departmento Munitorum to handle requistions and logistics for his regiment. "Colonel Minoc," she hurriedly began with worry in her voice. He spun around to a site that shocked his eyes.

Adept Sharinne quickly sidestepped to make room for the great figure who strode in like a king in Astartes power armour and towering above the Colonel. The armour shone like silver with heavy studs embedded into its left shoulder pauldron and upon its right shoulder pauldron was emblazoned a great sable two headed eagle on a red shield. There was a jump pack mounted to its back whose features were fashioned into great black windswept wings. In his left hand he held the armour's helmet which was fashioned into a beak and had a laurel etched in black upon the surface of its forehead. In his right, he held a dataslate.

But, Colonel Minoc noticed that only on the periphery as he was transfixed by the face looking upon his. This was a highly decorated officer of the Black Eagles and yet he had no tattoos or branding upon his face. Inquisitor Domingus had instructed him that the Brothers of the Black Eagles chapter went through terrible conditionings to make them more resilient to attacks from the daemons of the warp. Most wore this conditioning as runes and sigils tattooed and branded into their flesh, a terrible visage for all to see. But, not the chapter's psychic librarians. Their runes and sigils were etched into the very surface of their bones, a terrible and painful process. Thus, Colonel Minoc realized that not only was there a member of the Astartes chapter he had thought destroyed standing before him now, but the being was a highly decorated librarian.

Transfixed by the stare of the mighty being in front of him, Colonel Minoc found himself unable to speak. But, the dark eyed and dark haired figure broke the silence with a voice that commanded obedience. "I am Triumvir Lucius Flavius of the Black Eagles," spoke the giant. "I have come here to speak to you personally regarding a requisition." The giant paused, awaiting a response.

"I am Colonel Minoc of the Vorlossian Siege Infantry regiment. Whatever you request of my regiment is yours. It is an honor to serve." The words tumbled from his mouth.

"First, I will require your regiment. Your entire regiment." He paused, giving a moment for the words to settle into the Colonel's mind. "Second, I expect that you will arrange for the Hospitallers to be included with your regiment. Thirdly, I expect that you will gather and give an accounting for each and every orphan that has been left by the war. Fourthly, the reclaimators and artisan currently assigned to rebuild Essinar shall be included in this requisition. Here is a Warrant signed by the High lords of Terra. Make it so," he finished while showing a vid-rep on the dataslate in his right hand. The Colonel was in shock. Not only was he face to face with a Triumvir of the Black Eagles but he was being requisitioned with a Warrant signed by the High lords of Terra.

"Lastly, I was a personal friend of Inquisitor Dacia Domingus, may she rest with the Emepror. You will direct me to her Throne Agents. They have a package I am here to retrieve. With her passing, I will take her place as your superior with the Inquisition. Understood?"

"Yes, Triumvir Flavius," answered the Colonel.

Overseer Terzo sat on his bunk half-heartedly studying his dataslate while Primaris Psyker Brecht sat lotus style on the floor with his eyes closed. The Overseer took notice as the psyker's eyes suddenly opened, flashing emerald. Quickly the psyker turned his head and looked in the direction of the Capitol Imperialis. "What is it, Brecht?" the Overseer asked of his friend.

"He is coming for her." The psyker did not need to elaborate on who was being referred to. The Overseer knew "she" was the remains of Saint Aessina.

 **Sometimes a tiny spark can start a fire to light the dark**


End file.
